The usefulness of the open surgical technique of sternocostal elevation for asymmetric pectus excavatum: a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: The Nuss procedure is currently the mainstream of pectus excavatum (PE) surgery; however, it is considered to be more difficult for asymmetric cases than for symmetric ones. Sternocostal elevation (SCE), which was performed at our hospital, is a surgical method that determines the extent of resection of the costal cartilage while comparing the left and right balance during surgery; thus, it is highly useful for correcting rib cage with strong asymmetry.

METHODS: Of the 256 patients who underwent SCE at our hospital between July 2014 and July 2022, 58 (22.7%) with asymmetric PE were retrospectively examined. However, patients with advanced scoliosis having a Cobb angle of 25° or higher were excluded; therefore, 51 (19.9%) patients were analyzed. Two indices and other measurements were evaluated to determine the success of correction for asymmetry using computed tomography (CT).

RESULTS: The difference between the left and right thoraxes, the Haller index, and the sternal torsion angle significantly improved. Furthermore, we herein set a new numerical index as an indicator of asymmetry improvement and to be used for a more standard thorax morphology; the difference between the left and right thoraxes/the average of the left and right thoraxes. That new index also significantly improved.

CONCLUSIONS: SCE is considered a highly useful surgical method for asymmetric PE.